Bialetti

Alfonso Bialetti (1888–1970) was an engineer who became famous for acquiring Luigi De Ponti's invention of the simple yet elegantly designed Moka Express coffeemaker. Designed in 1933, the coffee pot has been a style icon since the 1950s. It is the source of nostalgia and affection for many Italians, and is an essential and fashionable part of almost every Cucina Italiana (“Italian kitchen”). The Moka Express (pictured atop amber charcoal at my house in Kalemie, Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo) is a time-honored classic.